My Heart is so Full When I'm with You
by AsLostAsAliceAsMadAsTheHatter
Summary: Scrooge ponders an answer to a simple question, and recalls precious memories along the way.


"Darling? What are you thinking about?"

Scrooge looked down at Magica, cradled against his chest, draped in one of his shirts, and smiled softly. How best to answer?

* * *

_They were fighting as always, Magica having summoned some odd little minions to assist her. Before he could summon help they piled on him, pinning him down, and he found she had already disabled the guards. What choice did he have but to give her the dime? _

_They were both horrified when the coin turned out to be fake. _

"_**Our **__Number one stolen! Such a dirty trick!"_

_It was the one thing they could agree on, that dime belonged to them, their fight and rivalry. He didn't hesitate to accept her offer to locate it. The chase took them all across town and beyond, to no avail, every lead coming to a dead end. Even still, they made a good team. Why, if not for Magica they never would have discovered the coin was still in Duckburg! And maybe he did feel a tad guilty about her tiring herself out in the duel with Wali. _

_The real trouble was when they returned and discovered that they had officially run out of leads. Magica tried a new spell, which didn't work, and he insulted her, calling her a poor excuse for a witch and saying she'd never make it on her own without his dime. He winced at the memory when he would later think back on it, but it did serve to show that she was trustworthy, and it was one of the first times he saw her as more than simply an enemy. He wouldn't realize it for years, but that was the moment his feelings began to turn._

* * *

_Something was amiss, he knew it deep down, but he couldn't pinpoint exactly what. All he really knew was that Magica was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen, and he loved her. He offered her everything, but all she wanted was his first dime, and of course she could have it! _

_He was just about to give it to her when his nephews rushed in, trying to convince him to keep the dime and insulting Magica all at once. It made him angry. How dare they speak of her like that, especially while she was in the room?! He shoved them back, and then asked her to marry him. After all, he loved her even more than money, something he'd never believed possible._

_That small part of him that insisted something was wrong took note of her reaction. She blushed, hiding her face with a smile. But she stalled, citing it was so sudden she needed to think on it, and left with the dime. He didn't care, how could he? Surely soon they'd be walking down the aisle!_

_He came back to himself as he was scribbling hearts on the wall with their initials. Once Donald had explained what happened, they hatched a plan to retrieve his precious dime, one that she wouldn't see coming. _

_The boys admittedly had to shove him toward the shed where she took refuge, but acting the part of a lovesick man came surprisingly easily. His words were, while not genuine, not outright lies either, and it confused him. But it had the desired result, and he was able to enter the shed and fight for the dime. In their scuffle, a bottle was knocked over and shattered on the floor. Scrooge quickly realized it was the same potion she'd used on him, and the irony didn't escape him as he pulled the same trick on her to retrieve his dime, which she willingly handed over. _

_He knew the words she spoke were a creation of the potion and nothing more, but why then did his chest feel warm when she spoke to him with such kindness and love? Her attempting to change clothes to be "presentable" for him was what got him moving. That was something he didn't need to see, and the gentleman in him strongly urged him to leave on top of it. Even if he had wanted to see what she had in mind, it wasn't right since she was spellbound._

_She of course followed him back to the bin after a bit, beginning for entrance. He tried his best to ignore both her shouts and the confused thoughts swirling in his head._

* * *

_She had gotten him again with a love potion. It was one of her favorite tricks in recent years as it always worked, but what she didn't realize was the more often she used it the more aware of it he became. Of course he showered her with gifts, begged her to come to dinner. The usual things he offered when she chose such a trick. But he'd been observing her reactions every time, and they were becoming more and more genuine it seemed. _

_This time she seemed overwhelmed but pleased, and a little embarrassed when he offered her the extremely large bouquet of roses, and giggled when she accepted his invitation to dinner. He wondered if she'd actually show up as his body forced him to move and prepare the bin for a romantic setting. Usually she did, but only long enough to get her hands on the dime, and then she disappeared. He didn't want to examine why it had begun to upset him when she did so._

_To his surprise she not only came to the bin but stayed through dinner. They had pleasant enough conversation, of course mainly on her end as any rely he had was overly syrupy sweet with pet names and love declarations, but it wasn't horrible. As usual it ended with a marriage proposal (and why wasn't that idea as off-putting as it used to be?). She pulled the same trick of asking for the dime as he knew she would, but the kiss on the cheek was new and had him blushing, feelings reeling, both fake and real. She ducked out with her usual excuse, and he sat and waited until the spell finally wore off before dashing to the airport, only to find the plane had taken off an hour previous._

_Luckily for him, Gyro had just finished a new chemical, one that created fears when applied. He took it along with his private jet and just managed to beat Magica to the lip of the volcano. She attempted to hit him with a foof bomb, but he was faster, spraying her with the compound. Its effects were immediate, and she literally threw the coin to him in disgust. _

_Realization dawned as the dime left her hand, and she swore at him, but he still told her what he had done. Perhaps it was slightly cruel, but no more than what she had done to him. Besides, it would wear off eventually. (Good thing too, because he suspected he would miss their fights). _

_On the flight home he pondered his ever-changing emotions concerning the witch, and her own unusual reactions. An idea was dawning, but surely he was wrong. Only time would tell._

* * *

_It wasn't until she stranded them on that island that he realized his feelings. As they worked together once more to find more Moonquartz to take them home, they talked. It wasn't the first time of course but somehow on the island she was...softer. More genuine. He found himself becoming that way too, sharing things he hadn't spoken of in years as they spend nights by the fire, watching waves lap the shore. She even shared with him the task given to her by the Witch Council, and suddenly everything became clear. She was a person of someone else's making, living a life chosen for her, not one she sought but one she'd been forced into. _

_He pondered that as they continued searching, slowly combing the island through the days. He realized then that she wasn't truly evil, couldn't be, not when she had been such a different person in her youth, and as they continued to talk he saw more and more of her true self. _

_Their luck being what it was, it just so happened they fell into a cave filled with the Moonquartz, but also a giant lizard who called the cave home. She saved them with a taming spell, one he suspected she wouldn't have known if not for her love of animals. They gathered the stones quickly, making sure to leave before the spell wore off. They ended up under the beach, waiting for the crystal to be charged under the moon. _

_Magica was back to acting stand-offish, her usual persona, but he now knew there was more to her than that. And so he apologized, though he did throw in a few good-natured insults. He admitted that she was more than just a cunning witch, even complimented her, and of course it was met with sarcasm as was her way, though she did seem genuinely flattered. He charged at her when she admitted that she was still going to attempt to steal his dime, but she stopped him._

"_Please Scroogie! Don't spoil this wonderful evening! Let us look at the moon."_

_How could he deny her? They settled in the same close to the edge of the water, and she began telling him about her childhood, a previously mostly ignored subject. He fell asleep to the sound of her voice, also waking to it as she proclaimed the crystal charged. Excited, he then admitted he had enjoyed their time on the island and she seemed surprised, though it didn't last long. And dare he say, under her shock, she looked...happy? _

_It wasn't until after he'd made it back to the bin and searched for any traces of Moonquartz that he realized what had really happened. She had deliberately planned that trip for him, a mini vacation. But why? As he attempted to discover her reasoning another thought dawned on him, one he couldn't ignore. He had enjoyed the time with her, just them. And she had enjoyed it as well. _

_His eyes widened as his feelings finally became clear after so many years. He had the chunk of crystal placed on a pedestal beside his beloved dime, the rock now a symbol of the love he was sure he felt for the witch._

* * *

Those memories and more flooded him as he tried to answer her question. So many years they had been together one way or another, and so many they had wasted fighting. He pulled her closer, kissing her forehead.

"My heart is so full when I'm with ye," he murmured, and that was answer enough.


End file.
